Current-motor.



E. C. BRITT.

CURRENT MOTOR.

APPLICATION FILED NOV-14.1913- 1 ,148,074. Patented July 27, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

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COLUMBIA PLANOGRM'IH (20., WASHINGTON. D. c.

E. C. BRITT;

CURRENT MOTOR. APPLICATION FILED No'v.14. 1913.

1,148,074. Patented July 27, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

nnr erro EDMUND C. BRITT, F TACOMA, WASHINGTON.

CURRENT-MOTOR.

Application filed November 14, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EDMUND C. Bnrrna citizen of the United States, residing at Tacoma, in the county of Pierce and State of ashington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Current-Motors, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in current motors and one of the objects is'to provide blades on a blade-carrier which are capable of movement into a motor impelling position under the action of the current, when traveling in one direction, and which assume non-resisting positions when travel.- ing in another direction,this feature of my invention being carried out without any pivotal or like connection of the blade with the carrier other than the pivotal mounting of the blade thereto.

A further object of my invention is to provide a water motor which is equally adapted for operation when submer ed in a current or when the motor is embodied in connection with a flame wherein the blades are only operated or immersed in the current during one lap of travel.

A further feature of the invention consists in disposing the wheels of the carrier inwardly with respect to the outer working or ges of the blade so that the strainupon the blade will not be localized at outer points but will be distributed throughout the structure of the blade so that the latter can be made of lighter construction than has been heretofore possible.

A further novel feature is to provide means for preventing deflection of the chain from a true course under action of devices tending to hold the blade in a working position.

Further objects and features of the inven tion will be more fully described in connection with the accompanying drawings and will be more particularlypointedout and ascertained in and by the appended claims.

In the drawings :Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of one form of my invention embodied in connection with a fiume, showing the latter partly in section and partly in elevation. Fig. 2 is a sectional view on line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional view of one of the blade carrier wheels. Fig. 4; is a perspective view of a portion of one of the blades. Fig. 5 is a sectional view Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 27, 1915.

Serial no. 801,024.

on .line 55 of Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a detail view.

L ike characters of reference designate similar parts throughout the different figures of the drawings.

As illustrated, I have shown the device of; my invention in connection with a flume with the device designed to be immersed only 'sufliciently to bring the axis of rotation of the carrier wheels approximately at the level of the water. It will be understood, however, that I do not wish to be confined to this particular adaptation of my invention as the same is capable of ellicient operation when wholly submerged.

Describing the specific construction shown, 1 designates a flame having side walls 2, a bottom wall 3 and atop wall 41-, providing a passage for a portion of the current. The flume 1 constitutes supportmg means for a blade carrier, which in the present construction traverses an elongated or loop-like path with one lap continuously submerged and the other lap above the water level. I have shown two blade carriers in the form of endless chains 5 which are trained about pairs of carrier wheels 6 and 7 disposed at opposite ends of the fluine 1. The wheels ,6 are mounted upon a shaft 8, journaled in bearings 9 and the wheels 7 are mounted on a shaft 10, journaledin bearings 11, the shaft 10 serving to support a pulley .or like element from which power may be utilized.

Aiplurality of blades are' mounted upon the carriers 5 and the said blades are con-.

nected, preferablypivotally, with thecarriers at points ofi center vwithrespect to one dimension of the working faces of the blades so that the action of the current on the blades will right the same to a working position, which is preferablyat rightangles to the direction of fiow of the current, upon immersion of the blades into the water.

As shown, the blades are pivotally mounted on the carriers at 12, the bladesbeing provided with lugs 13 projecting fromtheir working faces and adapted to embrace the carriers on opposite sides thereof. It will be seen by reference to Fig. 1, that the lugs 13 are nearer the upper than the: lower edges of the blades so as to thereby: dispose the lugs 13 off center with respecttothe verticaildimensions of the blades. In order to permit the blades to swing under the ac: l"

tion of a current into an operating position, 1 slot the upper portions of the blades, as indicated at 14:, so that the same will straddle the carriers and also the carrier wheels. The slots themselves, reduce the working area of the upper surfaces of the blades with respect to the lower surfaces and would thereby themselves serve to unequalize the action of thecurrent on the blade so that the latter would right themselves under current pressure even though the lugs were not off center with respect to the vertical dimensions of the blade. It will be seen by reference to Fig. 1, that while the blades are traversing the upper lap of travel they occupy non-resisting positions or in other words, they lie'in the plane of the water surface whereas during the lower lap of travel they lie substantially at rigl'itangles to the plane of the water surface. Thus it will be seen that the device of my invention would ope ate even though it were wholly submerged.

\Vhen the blade at the extreme right of Fig. 1 enters the water, the current will reverse the position of the blade so as to swing the same into the position occupied by the blade in the fiume of Fig. 1. Now in order to limit such reverse or righting action of the blades under current pressure, I provide each blade with means such as a stop arm 15 which is preferably channel or trough shape so as to embrace the carrier chain 5, as shown more particularly in Fig. 2. The blades which are indicated as a whole at 16, are proportioned so as to substantially fill the interior of the flume so that the entire area of each blade can be subjected to current pressure during its lower lap of travel, there being a slight working marginal clearance to prevent wedging of the blade. Should any obstruction be present in the flume, the blades are free to tilt in a direction to move their stop arms 15 out of contact with the carrier chain in order to permit the blades to pass over any such obstruction but the stop arms 15 limit tilting movement of the blades under action of the current pressure.

By reference to Fig. 2 it will be seen that the blade carriers are not only disposed between the sides of the blades but between the upper and lower edges so as to thereby avoid any localization of strainat widely separated points of attachment of the blades with the carrier. Thus it will be seen by reference to Fig. 2 that the blades can be made of very light material owing to the fact that they are mounted on their carriers between their lateral edges.

In order to prevent flexure of the chain upwardly under the action of the stress transmitted by the arms 15, I provide a carrier retainer, two being shown, and indicated at 17 The ends of the carrier retainers are rounded off, as indicated at 18, to fit closely to the wheels 6 and 7, while the lower margins are continuously straight so as to hold the carrier chains 5 to a straight line of travel.

The carrier retainer 17 may be of hollow construction, as indicated in Fig. 2, and will be of an outer cross section correspond ing to the contours of the slot 14 so that the blades can be passed about the retainer. At their upper edges, the retainers 17 are secured to the upper wall 1 of the flume, as indicated at 19.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 1, the stop arms are provided with flanges 20, whereby they may be riveted to the blades, as indicated at 21.

One of the features of my invention con- 'sists in an improved construction of wheel which is especially adapted for current motors of that character wherein blade carriers in the form ofchains are used.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 3, my improved wheel may comprise a cast or other form of hub comprising a body portion 22 and reduced hub extension 23,

thereby formingshoulder or faces 2d. The body of the wheel may consist of sheet or other form of disks 25 provlded with central apertures adapted to take over the hub extensions 23 and lie in abutting relation against the shoulders or faces 21 to which they may be secured by means such as rivets 2G. The peripheral portions of the disks 25 may be contracted by connecting means such as rivets 27 with a suitable spacing strip 28 to insure a proper space between the extreme peripheral edges. As shown, the spacing strips, which will be annular in form are spaced some considerable distance inwardly from the marginal edges so as to permit the margins of the disks to be cut away, as indicated at 29, to form teeth 30, for engagement with the carrier chains 5. A wheel of this construction can not only be made very cheaply but will permit of the disks being made of sheet material of a very thin gage, if desired. Where the disks 25 are of thin sheet metal, the spacing strip 28 may be formed of sheet metal.

By reference to Fig. 5, it will be seen. that the spacing strip not only functions to space thetoothed margins apart from each other but that it also supports the chain peripherally on the wheel, the outer periphery of the spacing strip 28 being abreast of the bases of the teeth 30. Furthermore, the fastening means 27 serve to support the spacing strip 28 as well as to dish the wheel fitted over the blades to have this connector 32 within the notches of the blades and the spaced blades 31 will then be received against the opposite faces of the plates and the attachment will be held in the proper operative relation to prevent movement of the blades from the feathering to the operative position. A handle or grip 83 is provided upon one of the-plates 31 and by grasping this handle the stop means may be readily inserted and removed from the operative relation.

It is believed that the advantages and the construction will be clearly understood from the foregoing description, andwhile I have herein shown land describetl one specific form of my invention, I do not wish to be limited thereto except for such limitations as the claims may import.

I claim I 1. In a current 'motor, a blade carrier, means for supporting said blade carrier in a current, blades pivoted on said carrier off center with respect to "one dimension of their working faces thereby causing cur-rent adjustment of said blades into substantially right angular relation with respect to the direction of flow of current, said blades shaped to embrace said carrier in a portion of their extent, and channel-shaped stops mounted on the obverse faces of said blades to extend at right angles thereto andto engage with said carrier means upon movement of the blades under current action to hold the blade in the proper operative relation.

2. In a current motor, an endless elongated carrier, a sluice box for supporting said carrier in a' current, blades made of a dimension to fit the cross-section of said sluice box, pivotal mounting between said blades and said carrier "arrangedlto be off center with respect to one dimension of the working faces of said blades thereby causing a currentadjustment of said blades to a substantially right angular position with're spect to the direction of'fiow, said blades shaped to embrace that portion of said carrier with which connection is had, and channel-formed stops mounted on the obverse faces of each of said blades at a point adjacent the connection thereof with the endless elongated carrier to extend at right angles from said blades and to be engaged around the carrier as the blades are moved to the operative relation under current action to hold said bladesin the proper relation and to prevent lateral or side twist thereof.

3.'In a current motor, a blade carrier, means for supporting the carrier in a current to have movement in a fixed path, a plurality of blades, a pivotal connection between each of said blades in the body portion thereof and said blade carrier and said connection so formed that current action will serve to adjust said blades to a substantially right angular position with respect to the direction of How of the current, and a channel-shaped stop mounted adjacent each of the pivotal connections to be engaged around said carrier as the blades are brought to the operative relation and to hold the same in their working position and prevent side or twisting movement thereof.

4. In a current motor, a plurality of slotted blades, a carrier structure, a movable connection between said carrier structure and said blades in the spaced slots thereof, and a channel-shaped stop secured at the base of each of said slots to engage with and embrace said carrier as the blades are brought to the proper operative relation and prevent lateral or twisting movement thereof. I

5. In a current motor, a blade carrier, means for supporting the carrier in a cur rent, a plurality of blades provided with slots formed in the body portion thereof from one side, pivotal connections between said blade carrier and each of said blades at a point adjacent the base of said'slots, the mounting of the carrier and blades arranged in such a'manner that the blades may have free movementto a position at right angles with respect to the direction of flow of the current and may swing to a feathering relation, and V channel-shaped stops secured to the obverse ":aces of said blades at the base of the slots t ierein to engage with and embracethe carrier and to maintain the blades in the proper operative relation and to' prevent lateral or twisting movement thereof. 7 r

6. In a current motor, an endless belt carrier, means, for supporting said carrier in the current to have a'forward and return movement, a plurality-of blades having slots formed from one side thereof to eX- tend to the body portion, pivotal connections provided between-said blades near the base of the slots thereof and said carrier, said parts so arranged that the bladesmay vmove to a feathering position upon the return movement of the carrier and are brought to the righted position and to have the current impact against the working faces thereof on the forward movement, and channel shaped stops secured to the obverse sides of said blades at the base of each of the slots thereof to engage and embrace with said carrier and to maintain the blades in the proper righted position and to prevent lateral or twisting movement thereof.

7. In a current motor, a pair of endless belt carriers arranged in parallel relation, means for supporting said carriers in a current to have forward and return movement,. a plurality of blades having slots formed from one edge thereof into the body &

portion in a spaced relation corresponding to the spacing of said carriers, a pivotal connection formed between each of said blades near the base of the slot thereof and said carrier, all of said parts arranged in'a manner that the blades upon the return movement of the carrier may move to a feathering position and upon forward move ment of said carrier are brought by current action to the righted position to have the current impact against the working faces thereof, and channel-shaped stops secured to said blades on the obverse sides thereof and adjacent the base of each of said slots to engage and embrace with the carriers to hold the blades in the righted relation and to prevent side and twisting movement thereof. v

8. In a current motor, a fiume, carrier wheels on said flume, an endless carrier trained about said Wheels to run lengthwise through the flume, blades proportioned to closely fit the interior cross section of the flume, and chains mounted on said carrier, said blades being slotted to straddle the carrier.

v9. In a current motor, a flume, carrier wheels rotatably mounted near the ends and projecting into said flume, an endless carrier trained about said wheels to run lengthwise through said flume, blades slotted to straddle said carrier and pivoted thereon for movement by the current into working positions in their passage through said fiume, said blades having means engaging said carrier to limit their movement under current action, and means engaging the carrier to hold the same in position in its passage through said fiume.

10. in a current motor, a flume, carrier wheels rotatably mounted on and projecting into the end portions of the flume, a carrier cham'tramed about said wheels for righted position, the construction of the blades being such that the slotted portions thereof straddle the carriers and the arrangement of the parts being such that the blades are held in their working position during passage through the flume, said blades having stop arms for engaging said carrier chains to limit adjusting movement of the blades under the action of the current, and a guide in said flume for preventing flexure of the chain upwardly under the action of said stop arms.

11. In a current motor, a flume, carrier wheels rotatably mounted on said arm and projecting into said fiume, a carrier chain mounted around said carrier wheels, a chain retain r extending between said wheels and projecting downwardly into the flume to a point to engage with the inner face of the lower extent of the chain to retain the latter against flexure, the cross section of the retainer corresponding to the cross section of both portions of the wheels projecting into said flame, and blades pivoted on said chain for movement into working positions under current action, said blades being pivoted to the chain between their upper and lower edges and, being slotted toward their points of pivotal connections to straddle said wheels and retainer, and said blades being provided with stop arms engaging said chain to limit movement of said blades under current action.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

EDMUND C. BRITT.

\Vitnesses v S. J. HAUGK, O'r'ro Scnmrrzn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

' Washington, I). C. i 

